Discord of Shadows
by Karukos
Summary: Young Zed is eaten up by jealousy, looking for a way to beat his eternal rival Shen... and the way he found changes his life more than he would have ever guessed.
1. Intro

Hello guys, this time I got a bit darker stuff for you and not only that, this is going to be my first multichaptered work. Hope you like it and review it. Critique is asked for!

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Moonlight was one way to hide in the shadows. Carefully a man sat one foot in front of the other, sliding his feet over the floor his feet so he would not make a single sound. He was careful, trying to avoid the noisy tiles in the parquet. Years of training had perfected his sneaking, and since he was on familiar ground he was basically undetectable. Zed was confident in his abilities, nobody could sense him now.

Slowly, he slid open a bamboo door and sneaked through another corridor until he stood in front of a large metal door, leading to the library of his clan. It had not been too hard to figure out where his master hid the keys. Not that it mattered; after all he knew he had to acquire knowledge, Shen had no clue of. Akali had given him the tip; she was the first to hear there were forbidden techniques inside of the library… she said it was just a rumor, but Zed believed it to be true… it had to be true. How else could he finally defeat his rival?

The metal of the key was warmed by his hand as he stood there motionlessly for a few moments. As he realized his short slack he quietly inserted the key in the slit before he heard a silent click, just enough to make it obvious that the door was unlocked. As quickly as possible he slipped into the library, closing the door behind him, but not without pulling the key off. He didn't want to be discovered after all.

His feet barely moved as he felt the thrill of adrenaline filling his blood. Yes, he was doing something forbidden, but for some reason it made him feel excited. He snapped back to reality when he realized he was not allowed to waste any time. He carefully sat one foot in front of the other, going farther and farther back into rows of books and scrolls with more and more advanced techniques… but he was not aiming for those. He was aiming higher!

The ninja in training scurried up to a small pedestal that he had observed before. The small box on it, ornate with several ancient looking figures, was the object of Zed's desire. All he wanted was in this box. He didn't know what it was exactly, but he guessed it was going to teach him how to finally beat Shen and make his master proud.

He tilted his head, going into a squat to get a different angle on the pedestal. Yes, from this point of view it was obvious where the traps were. Several small strings and two pressure tiles that were meant to be activate and alarm everybody as soon as he triggered even one of them. But since he knew about them now… well they wouldn't stop him now.

He memorized the traps as best as possible as he began to slither forward, carefully stepping over the first string. Before he set his foot onto the floor he made a little spin to the side not to land on the pressure plate, while also ducking under the second string. He was nearly there. Moving forward, he dodged the other tree pressure tiles and got over all the other traps they had prepared to protect what was hidden in the box on the pedestal.

The moment had come. Licking his lips in anticipation, he put his hand on the lid of the casket. It wasn't even locked to his surprise… well they probably thought that it was enough to have it behind so many traps. Zed chuckled as he took a look inside looking at the scroll that featured a faceless mask and red glowing eyes staring at him from the silver ornament.

Suddenly he felt a cold rush inside of him, as if somebody had switched out his beating heart with an ice block. It was a miraculous yet unsettling feeling. He knew, that something bad was about to happen, however he reminded himself to stay strong and determined. Since he was a child, he learned that danger was always a friend on his way to experience. However, as hard as he tried to stay strong he still felt icy in his chest and could swear he even heard a deep, sinister laughter in the back of his mind. And with that, a flash bleached his mind white for a moment as knowledge he didn't know existed streamed into his head, filling up with a new art. The Art of the Shadows.

His supernatural experience got interrupted when he heard a noise behind him; somebody was coming! He laid down the casket, carefully closing the lid, before he used his newfound knowledge, shifting into the shadows of the library. And as the door opened, Zed was no longer in there and his master stood inside of the empty room, murmuring: "I feel like something bad is about to happen."


	2. Revision

Hello there. Here is the first real chapter to my FF I hope you can enjoy it. Comment, follow, fav... whatever crosses your mind ^^

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When Zed reached his own room, he let out a sigh of relief. Yes, he had managed to get a glance, to get a bit of knowledge out of this little adventure. He felt a bit of regret in the depth of his heart, that he couldn't open the scroll properly so he would know all its secrets, but those things could be done at a later point.

Slowly he got undressed, before slipping in his bed with a smile on his features. The warm cotton of his blanket embraced him and he knew when he would wake up he would be greeted by something even warmer. The smile persisted on his face. From all things in this world, he wanted to share his experience with her. She gave him the idea; she should also know the results. Who knew? Maybe the next trip to the scroll in the library would be done with both of them.

With these thoughts in mind, he slowly slipped off into a dreamless sleep. The only thing persistent in his mind was the cold stare he felt before, when he opened the casket. And after an hour under its gaze he didn't feel uncomfortable by it anymore. It became… almost natural to see it. They were inhuman eyes, yes. But nothing of it seemed bad to him, despite its strange nature.

His thoughts about this subject were interrupted, gently, as he felt soft lips pressed against his own, a smile on his face as he slowly opened his eyes to see jade green eyes looking back at him, making his heart skip a beat. Just as their lips were about to part, Zed rose himself from his bed, kissing her once again, this time for longer. A bit breathless, but with a satisfying feeling in their guts, Zed and Akali sat across of each other, giving each other a silent "good morning" with their smiles.

Only after a short moment, however, they stood up, grabbing each other's hand before they sat out on the training grounds. It was not that their training would start soon, but that they wanted to be there early: Talking, laughing and exchanging today the news of yesterday. After all it was Akali's suggestion to look for the scroll in the library.

It was a beautiful morning as they walked through the corridors of the small mansion the clan was centered in. The surrounding mountains just held out the sun a little bit, its scarlet red beauty rising between their summits. Akali had mentioned it once in one of their long talks that she found the scenery of this place so romantic… and as cool as Zed at times tried to be, he had to agree with her in that point.

"So tell me, what happened yesterday? Since you are still here, I assume you weren't caught."

Until now Zed hadn't noticed that they were not talking yet, but since they nearly reached their destination he guessed they should talk, yes.

"Well, what should I say? I kinda succeeded and yet somehow I failed. I passed everything and took a glimpse at it but then suddenly I heard somebody coming and I had to flee before I could read it." He explained to his girlfriend. "It was quite strange though. I did not read it. Still I felt like I learned something from it by merely looking at it. It was a scary feeling, but yeah, and then I was interrupted as I just told you."

Akali looked at him a little bit bewildered, tilting her head as if she didn't fully understand what Zed was talking about. "So you didn't read, but you learned something from the scroll? How does that even work…?" He couldn't really answer the question so he just shrugged, letting her suffer in her confusion.

Zed sighed a bit before he continued: "Well, if you want I can show you what I learned. There was some pretty cool stuff as well." He was smiling cockily, trying his best to pose. He knew Akali was his now, but still… he wanted to impress her. It was natural he guessed but still…. Sometimes he noticed the traits of an awkward teenager inside of himself, even though he tried his best to act mature and coolheaded. A few people might say he was not very successful in it; however, he had a different opinion about that himself.

"So anyways… do you think you can actually beat him today?" Akali asked him smiling widely, leaning a bit towards him, and making the teenager grin his widest smile. "Of course, what did you expect?" He said with a chuckle. Akali made a turn, looking once over her shoulder, before she responded with sly expression: "I hope so. If so I got a reward for you tonight~"

Zed blinked a few times in surprise as he heard that. Was she serious? He just knew that his astonishment was obvious from the way Akali walked away with a giggle and a strut that showed off her, for a teenager, very well developed curves.

Taking a deep breath Zed knew that concentrating now would be hard. On which side was she on? He asked himself sarcastically. The smile on his face however showed off that he was more than happy about this offer. How could he lose now? With that motivation?

He slowly refocused on the upcoming fight, turning away from Akali that had sat down onto a bench on the sidelines while the boy began making several exercises to stretch himself and to activate his Ki.

After that was done he went into more fighting oriented practices, shadowboxing, going through different stances with quick punches that were quickly delivered into his imaginary target's stomach and high kicks to knock them out in the end. It was a style he developed himself… his whole pride was that not only he was the master but also creator of this way of ending a fight quickly. Not to forget that now it was added up with a few new little tricks from the scroll.

Twenty minutes later he was done with his short warm-up ready for the fight that was going to happen today. From afar he already saw his master approaching, the Eye of the Twilight… and with him, his son and Zed's eternal rival, Shen.

The ceremonial greeting this morning was over quickly, the pupils bowed before their master, swearing to learn and fight to maintain the balance of this world. After that they was a short introduction why Shen and Zed would have a practice fight again. Both of them wanted to show how advanced they had become in their form of fighting and who is going to take his place when it was about time.

Zed was uneasy the whole time. He didn't fully understand why his master had to make everything so formal. Who was he telling something new anyways? Maybe he wanted to remind them on why they were here? As if anybody could forget that. He nearly had let out a loud sigh as his master was still talking, his self-control however suppressing even the slightest hint of annoyance.

Looking to the side towards Shen he saw only cold eyes that stared straight forward. That was something that always had crept out Zed about his rival and comrade: His seemingly emotionlessness that bordered on carelessness.

As if he had noticed the son of the master looked back at Zed smiling at him with warm shining eyes. However, he knew, like anybody else, who saw this gesture, that this was nothing but fake. He never smiled from the depth of his heart. You could see it in his eyes that it never fully reached it.

Refocusing on the words of his master again Zed looked again straight forward until he got the sign that it was their turn to get into position. Stepping into the center of the training field, Zed and Shen faced off, their master watching together with Akali from the sidelines. As it was form, Zed folded his hands in sync with Shen before making a bow. Rising slowly, he took stance same as his opposite. As a sign that the fight should begin they made a step closer, bumping fists before jumping back into position.

There were a few quick punches thrown at each other from both sides, testing out their opponent. Was there any weakness they showed today they usually didn't? Zed felt more and more confidence. He got the feeling that he was definitely than stronger.

Of course Shen was also feeling it as well, the confidence that this man radiated. Something was off, everybody could feel it as the last testing blow was delivered. Everything happened pretty quick. Zed dashed forward, his movements rapidly quick:

His left hand shot forward only to be stopped shortly in front of Shen's arm that was lifted to defend himself. With a grin he took the momentum he had gained by stopping his punch to twist his whole body to make a punch towards his opponent's guts. It kind of angered him when he only hit thin air, Shen jumping backwards to avoid this blow.

Making a step closer Zed went into his knees before sweeping his back foot forward. He didn't even pay attention if his kick had thrown of Shen off his balance, instead he jumped off the ground his fist rosen to an uppercut.

Suddenly time moved slower than ever he could see how Shen struggled to avoid his attacks, however… he did avoid them. With anger he had to watch how his rival dived away from his fist, denying him once again victory over him. With his teeth pressed together he remembered what he learned yesterday. The knowledge he had hoped to bring him his win finally…

A short moment later he was suddenly closer to Shen again, repeating the same move. With confusion Shen just barely managed to dodge this attack, but now he was clearly off balance. A jab against his chest followed, finally pushing Zed's rival over. As soon as the teenager heard his opponent's shoulders hit the ground he knew that victory was his.

He could hear a gasp from the side of the training field. Akali had her hands over her mouth, being shock about what she just saw happen. And he knew she was happy for him as she jumped from the bench, running over to him and jumped into his arms. "You did it!" She squealed full of joy, making him smile like a dork.

For a short moment however he let her go, turning towards Shen who sat on the ground with his trademark smile on his face. Holding out his hand, Zed offered to pull up his rival into standing position and with a chuckle Shen accepted, petting his shoulder as he walked by. He could have sworn that he heard the other boy saying "Well done" before he turned back to Akali to plant a soft kiss onto her lips.

As he rose his gaze again, his eyes met with his master's and while he had hoped to see pride for his success he saw suspicion inside of them and, if he was honest, a little bit fear as well. The first thought that crossed his mind was, that he was angry that he had finally surpassed his son, that he was the strongest now. It only took him a few seconds to realize how stupid that was.

"You are dismissed for today. You two did a great job, but now it's time for you to rest a bit. We see each other tomorrow" explained their master, the look in his eyes still dead serious. Zed did not understand what was wrong. He felt Akali's arm stroke over his as she walked by whispering into his ear: "Wait for me, tonight. I will bring you your reward" Her voice was a purr and the small breaths of air made the teenager's spine tingle with anticipation. A small nod to show that he understood and then they were forced to part their ways.

The rest of the day was rather regular. Zed tried his best to focus but anticipation held him in constant unease. Just the thought of his "reward" made him blush and lose focus. Something that his teacher's scolded him several times for today. But he hardly could help himself.

And then the fateful night came. The teenager could hardly sit down and wait when the sun finally reached the horizon and the moon has risen to it's full beauty. Instead of making himself crazy he began taking a bit charcoal and a piece of paper to draw.

He was not the best artist but in the end he was fairly satisfied of this little drawing of the landscape outside of his window. He smiled, putting utensils aside. On the border of his hearing he could hear footstep, quick but yet trying to be soundless. He just wanted to open his door as it was ripped open.

Zed had expected a lot of things to come into his room. It was no big surprise to see Akali storming in and slamming the door shut behind her. What set him off more was the terrified look and the fact that she seemed out of breath.

"We have to go" She murmured, earning only a confused mien from Zed. Akali swallowed, wiping the sweat off her brow. "They found out…" She started to explain, now a bit calmer than before "They found out that you opened the casket."


	3. Escape

With silent steps they tried their best to navigate over the roofs of the city. They had snuck out right after Akali brought the terrifying news that even now haunted Zed's mind. What made them know? Did he trigger a trap and did not notice? Did somebody see him but didn't alarm anyone else? Or was it that he had showed off too much in his fight with Shen? Whatever it was, he had to focus on the present.

Looking over his shoulder , he watched his girlfriend follow but still keep a safe distance between them . They would be easily noticed otherwise. . He thought about telling her he was glad she didn't think twice back in his room and climbed with him out of his window. He considered of saying something to her, but then reminded himself what was on the line. They must not get caught under any circumstances.

After about ten minutes they arrived at the side of the clan complex, bordering a deep and old forest. If they could get there, there was no way that they would ever be found again. _If _they could get there.

Biting his lip, Zed dashed faster, his feet hitting the ground harder than they should, making more noise than he should He was so close to his goal. There was no way he could stop now. While they flew over the roofs, the boy could hear various noises, from shifting to people talking. It made his nerves even more strained than they already were.

His breath grew heavy as more and more adrenaline shot through his veins in turn his head suddenly felt much lighter, the world strangely seeming further away as he felt his body reaction to the sudden jump of energy, propelling him even faster. It felt so alien to jump over the roofs, as if he had never done this before. He knew he will now leave this place forever… or at least he would not return for a very long time.

It was strange, looking back and seeing the buildings he had known since he was born and now leaving it all behind…

His feet hit the first branch of a bordering tree, Akali landing right next to him as the both of them looked back at their former home. "Strange, isn't it?" Her inquiry only confirmed Zed's thoughts. He simply nodded before jumping to the next branch, only saying: "Come; let's continue, orthey will find us."

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The sound of the night mainly consisted of the chirping of night birds and insects and the crackling of the small campfire in the middle of the forest, where Akali and Zed sat cuddled together under a blanket, warming each other in a tight embrace. His head rested on hers, while she nuzzled into his chest.

For the moment they were silent, enjoying each other's presence, eyes both open and closed while the campfire illuminated their faces. "How did you know about the scroll?" Zed's voice suddenly ripped through the silence of the night. Akali's eyes shot open, the female ninja shifting uncomfortably before sitting upright. Her expression was was a mix of sadness and amusement as she responded, "That question was bound to happen, huh?" A small huff escaped her lips before she turned to the side, laying on Zed's lap with eyelids lowered shut

"You know, the title I'd have gotten and that my mother currently holds? Fist of the Shadow. The Scroll holds the secret of the shadows… and it was shown to me once. That's why I knew; where it was, and that it existed."

An eyebrow cocked, Zed pondered over those words before opening his mouth with the intention to ask:, "_why you would show it to me then?"_ But before he could do anything he felt her finger press against his lips, her own soft pink pair forming a slight smile. "Don't question it, I just wanted to help."

Another moment of silence passed between them for a few minutes. It did not take long until he hears Akali's breath becoming softer and slower, and it did not take a genius to figure out that she had fallen asleep. He smiled a bit, leaning back to look at the stars, staring past the green mattress of leaves above him. What would the future bring? He was kind of scared...


	4. Tranquility

Ok guys this took way longer than expected, but I already have an idea how to progress from here. Please leave a review and a fav if you like it! See you in the next chapter!

"Turn, then let out your breath." Zed guided his pupils through the exercise. He himself showed them the motion, his eyes closed, to feel by himself the energy coursing through his body. Energy, Ki, Qui… there were many names for it, but it was basically all the same and also the base for all technique. The one he learned at the Order and the techniques the scroll more or less magically learned him.

He rose one hand in front of his face, pulling his elbow close to his body as he made a small twist with his wrist before slowly leading his other hand forward to make a slow punch before he released the tension from his body with another deep breath.

A light feeling filled his body, his head empty of any thoughts. Emptiness and therefore open for all the energy the world around him let stream through it.

"Ok that's it for this morning, everybody please check the schedule and do your work so our little community may continue existing."

With these words Zed bowed, hoping to inspire these people to do their best today. As he rose again, he looked at the crowd slowly disassembling and a smile graced his face. Who would have thought one year ago that this little community of over 60 people would come together and build themselves a home in the forest?

It had started only with him and Akali, living outside in the woods, just barely surviving in the makeshift homes they somehow managed to build. Until they began finding people, who were rejected by the Order as well. Sometimes they were people with potential and sometimes there were people with heart. Since Zed was one of the few people, who were actually trained to a certain part, he started teaching them what he learned. Of course, he as well taught them the Way of the Shadow, how he liked to call the techniques he so suddenly achieved.

While he was in thoughts, everybody has gone to work, either repairing the houses they had built over the time or acquiring food or water… likes of that. The thing he was most proud of, that this community had become nearly totally self-sustaining. Just from time to time they had to go to nearest village to trade some goods. For example metal for tools. Even though they had somebody skilled as blacksmith and people, who were able to make charcoal, but there was of course no way to mine iron anywhere.

Slowly he made his way to the first house they ever built and slipped opened the door. Inside was waiting a girl, with her hair up in a ponytail. She was studying some kind of paper, so focused, that she didn't even notice Zed entering. He smiled slightly and sneaked up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

A gasp and a jerk from the girl and they were suddenly facing each other. "Come on, Zed. Please don't scare me like that." Akali laughed, while he just snuggled into the bow of her neck.

She had changed in the past year. While she already had started maturing when they ran away from the Order, she had become a real mature beauty now. Nobody would assume she was only 18 years old. And the changes not only applied to her body but also her character. When Zed was at the end of his wits how to lead this group, Akali was usually was the one finding the solution. Which was, to be honest, quite often. Some of the members sometimes even said jokingly that Akali was the real leader of this little community.

"What are the plans for today?" He asked after a few seconds of standing there in silence, while Akali had started going back into reading whatever she was reading there… "Nothing big. Might wanna take a look into the village. If I got that right, they got new shippings and we might wanna take a look at it."

A smile on her face while Zed still stood behind her with his eyes closed. "When will we go?" - "Probably in an hour or two. I would like to check a few things." She tried to turn out of his grip however he would not let off her so easy. "Well, we got time for an hour or two~" He purred into her ear. A sigh from her, followed by a smile.

In hindsight it was good they spend their time like this. It would probably be the last time that they would be so happy together.


	5. Panic

Sorry for the late update. I must admit I was losing motivation for this story until recently. Good news tho are, that I didn't stop writing. I hopefully improved and the next chapter is coming soon-ish ;) have fun reading! If you like it, fav or comment or if you disliked it leave a comment too. It would really help, thank you 3

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Hand in hand they walked down the little path that lead out of the forest. They teased, talked and joked with each other like the couple wasn't able to for a very long time. Zed made stupid jokes and Akali laughed about them like the teenage girl she was. Their new life had thrown them into a whole new world with new challenges and had them growing up and lead a group of people who started gaining respect for them and who would follow their example blindly.

Finally alone and relieved from this stress they could be what they were, teenagers. Laughing and giggling they talked about how they worked in their groups like some other talked about their studies.

"Actually have you heard about the latest news?" Akali suddenly asked out of the blue as she jumped ahead of Zed, turning around as she walked backwards for a few steps. Before the boy could shake his head or answer in any way, she turned around, hands behind her back and continued:

"You know, I think the camp will get a new mouth to feed soon."

With a furrowed brow the teenage boy asked her: "Really who?" He only got a smile in response, telling him as much as 'it was a woman's secret'. And with that the topic was laid at acta nearly. At least verbally; Their minds couldn't help but wander to the possibility that they were maybe becoming parents on their own

Zed held out his hand to her again, but before she could take it he took her wrist and pulled her closer, wrapping his arm around her thin waist as leaned his head onto hers. He didn't know why but he heard Akali chuckle from that. He just hoped it was a good thing.

They continued to chat about unimportant stuff as they came closer to village's gates, waving the lazy guards as they sat in the shadow of the walls, leaning onto their polearms as they enjoyed the gentle midday breeze. Life was gentle to them, so the teenagers decided it was the best to grant them that with a chuckle on the quiet.

After passing a few houses with women sweeping the dirt out of their houses they finally reached what they came for, the little market place in the center of the village. If it wasn't for this little bazar with different wares at any time, Zed doubted that their group could have survived for longer than a month.

Here they bought everything important that they could not produce by themselves like tools, getting actual seeds for vegetables and some crops. Not to forget the knowledge of the village's blacksmith and workers in the village on how to build themselves homes and different little things as tables chairs and beds. Like said before, the camp would not be as far as it was now without these helpful people.

Akali stopped at the first counter they came to, an old woman greeting the couple: "Hello, darlings, what can I help you with?" While doing so she showed them her nearly toothless grin, giving her the appearance of a witch. It didn't really help that she was selling various kinds of herbs either.

After looking at the goods Zed decided that it was not his cup of tea (which was there as well) and continued down to the next stall.

He got there with a wide smile and was greeted by such as well. "Long time not seen, Zed." A rather young boy, around the age of Zed, leaned onto the wooden surface of his counter as a set of metal works were presented to him, neatly lined up in their respective boxes. The ninja himself just smirked, repeating the greet with a simple gesture of his hand before he leaned onto the count as well, forehead and forehead with his contemporary.

"Indeed, it's almost as if I came here only once a month or so." Zed responded after a short moment of intense staring contests between the two. For a moment or two they tried to look serious, resuming their fight of squints before both of them teared up and let out a laugh, finally standing in front of each other like normal people.

"Yeah that is probably the reason" the boy responded scratching the back of his head while waiting for an equal response from Zed.

"You could have thought of that sooner, you know, Hiko?" He continued to press his advantage smiling widely before he let the topic finally drop and come to more important things. "And did you do what I asked you for?" he asked behind his hand, glancing over to Akali, who was still chatting with the old lady.

Smiling, Hiko reached behind the counter, pulling something out from under the counter. Quick glances were shot towards the girl, making sure she was one hundred percent not paying attention to them of any kind before he put a small clothed bundle onto the counter. Opening it carefully Hiko unpacked the hairpins laying them carefully before Zed.

It was better than he had expected them to be. The small tunnel made of leather and light metal was perfect for Akali to stick up her trade mark ponytail. With the tip of his finger Zed traced the fine lines that were bulging out the surface lightly as it held the leather wrapping in place as well as functioning as ornament.

"Your father is out of this world, did I ever tell you that." Zed whispered in pure amazement as he took a closer look at this little accessory. It was perfect. Even more since Akali's birthday was coming closer and closer. He would not tell anybody, but secretly this was the reason he kept track of the days in the calendar. He would be too ashamed to admit it openly though.

"Yes, I think so, that makes you the opposite of my mum." Hiko joked as he held out his hand for the accessoire. Zed smiled as he gave the present back before he gripped into his pocket scratching out a few coins he had saved over the last couple of months. To be fair, the camp didn't earn a lot of money, just the little they did he parted equally between them and what was left then wandered in a collective box. These few coins however was his personal money.

He watched the other boy as he put his present into a small box and gave it to Zed, who gave him the appropriate amount of coins in return. Smiling to himself he put the box away, trying to hide inside of his clothes as good as possible. Hopefully Akali wouldn't notice. And even if she did, Zed was confident that he could distract her mind off this small bulge in his shirt.

Speaking of the devil, just as he was able to hide his present, Akali walked up to him, clinging to his arm almost immediately with a happy smile on her face. Before Zed could ask what was up she already asked:

"Got what you wanted?" For a moment he was afraid that he had seen it, shifting a bit to not let her get too close to the box under his clothes.

"Yeah, you too?" She just nodded, even though he had to admit he could not see whatever that was supposed to be. Did she buy anything for him? Or maybe for herself. Or maybe for the future mouth they talked about when coming here. To be honest it made him a bit nervous to not know... too nervous to actually ask her about that.

"Well, so what else do we need to get?" He asked in order to distract himself, and potentially her, from the topic of private surprises. Quickly Akali pulled a small roll of paper out of her pocket, rolling it open before studying it for a bit.

"We need just a few vegetables. That should be all. Nothing else was brought to our concern." She said as soon as she was sure she didn't forget anything of importance. It made him smile in all honesty, about her diligence even in these small things.

Without any further question Zed started walking into the center of the small town market, knowing this was were the most fruits and vegetables were sold. Akali just walked at his side, holding onto his hand with a smile brighter than sunshine. It made Zed go crazy! What was wrong? Why was she smiling so much?

He really really hoped that she had not figured out what he planned or even worse that she saw it! Just the thought that his surprise was ruined gave him a strange feeling in the belly.

His inner monologue was suddenly interrupted when he heard a loud bang in the distance. Immediately everybody's eyes shot up into the sky as a large object darkened the sun with its shadow. It was honestly awe inspiring, for everybody as they all stopped what they were doing to watch this phenomena.

However, they were quickly ripped out of their trance as the object seemed to accelerate. It was obvious what it was and before anybody could react a melon sized ball of metal crushed into a house, smashing it into pieces.

Panic ensued almost immediately. People started running, screaming, while others were startled and just watched events unfold in pure disbelief. as soon a the the object came closer quickly and before anybody could react a metal ball crashed into house tearing it down in matter of seconds. Scraps flew through through the air, people screamed in panic, movement shooting into the masses of petrified people.

Zed couldn't trust his eyes. He couldn't understand what just happened or rather he didn't want to understand. There never had been any sign of an attack while now he had to face the eventual destruction of the village. How did that make any sense?

Disbelief followed a rush of adrenalin as he had to face it. They were under attack. One cannon ball would probably not be the end of the whole story. If anything this was merely the beginning. He doubted that it would also be only a cannon, but at least a small legion standing behind it, even though he didn't know who.

Those thoughts were quickly confirmed as groups of black armored men and women started walking up to the top of the hill, where the shot originated from. Was that the Kinkou order? No that made no sense. Even if they found out that Zed and Akali was hiding in the forest next to the village, it did not seem like their usual way of dealing with it. It was not their style to leadership. They would also lose resources where they could just go with authority. However, who else would do it otherwise?

"Doesn't matter" his eyes shot to the woman who still held his hand, squeezing would be a better word in this case... Akali had not needed as much as a look on his face to determine what he was thinking. A smirk shortly was on his face before it reverted back into a serious look right now. The survival of their community depended on this village. Without it wouldn't take long until their home would crumble and all their efforts would have been for naught.

He gave Akali another look as he ordered: "Go get the others. They shall pick up anything they can use as weapon and come and help." Akali nodded loosening their grip on each others, before Zed clasped down once more, pulling her close as he placed a kiss on her cheek. "Return safely." With which she just smirked and answered: "Don't die before I return." With that they parted ways.

Quickly Zed made his way through the aisles of the now empty market. Everywhere he had looked for weapons, but for now he had only managed to get a butcher hook and a knife. It wasn't much, but he was sure that he could work with it. Especially the butcher hook felt extremely good in his hands. Probably because it was a working tool rather than a killing tool despite his current intents.

With heavy steps he forced himself closer and closer towards the gates of the village. He could feel anxiety rising, his heart beat quicken and adrenaline pumping through his veins. War was coming and fight was going to happen. He still couldn't believe it properly.

Reaching the gates he saw the guards taking formation, their legs shaking, the fear obvious in their gestures and faces. It was natural, after all like Zed, they had never fought a real battle for life or death, most of them probably didn't even expect to ever have to. But here they were, a mass of black building up ranks to storm the village.

While he had walked around he figured out why they were using resources on this unseemingly little village. To make an example. To mention the news of this merciless destruction and cruelty to intimidate their opponents making them tremble with fear what was the worst they would come up with after having been so cruel to one small piece of land.

Standing in the wings of the line of guards, holding their spears in a weak attempt to look protective… Now it was praying for all, praying that all turned out as he wished, seeing as they sea of chaos spurred into the plain.

The black Army attacked, their front lines messily charging, screaming with rage and bloodlust as they did not demonstrate strategy or discipline but raw unbound strength of their people. To be honest, if they tried to strike fear into the hearts of men, it worked even on Zed at the moment.

He trembled at the noise of the seemingly thousands of feet trampling the soil. They were coming closer. They were crushing him like an insect under their foot… Zed shook his head. No he was feeling this aura of death around them, but he would not let himself pushed down by that.

His fist coiled around the weapons, squeezing together harder until his knuckles went white in his gloves. Nervously he walked up and down the battlefield, hiding behind the rows, hiding from both the enemy and his own allies… like an old master said to him once when they practiced. "The unseen blade is the deadliest."

And the time was ticking, his mind went overboard as he couldn't help but imagine the different outcomes of this battle. Many of them were everything but positive. Flaming houses, trampled fields and corpses pierced on wooden poles.

Again shook his head, trying to get this pictures out of his head. He could not think about these kinds of things right now. Determination followed the panic. He would protect this village and with that his people… even if he lead them into the fight as soon as they arrived. If they arrived in time.

At the moment it didn't look like that would happen. The choir of thousand throats screaming their cacophonie as they slowly closed the gap between the village's defenses and the first line of the army.

There was a loud clash, a terrible accord of screams as steel crashed against steel. The battle had begun and Zed had no choice. He could see how men threw themselves against the shields of the guards, hammering onto them with brutal looking weapons… and then Zed suddenly knew what he had to do:

Without knowing how, he found himself on the side of the army, a surprised look on the nearest soldier as he turned to fight off the newcomer. Before he could say anything, he found a knife in his throat. The helmet of the young man slid off his face empty eyes looking in shock as his life slipped away.

A cold smirk forced itself onto his face as he saw the man fall. Faintly he heard him chuckle. Yes it felt good… he had a reason of course, but it wouldn't hurt if it was fun right? A freezing chill ran down his spine as if he was watching but it was pleasant almost. It matched his emotions.

His body started moving, on its own, on instinct, or because of his own decisions… he could not tell, he didn't want to. But for now it was time to fight!


	6. Resolve

He had drawn blood. Lots of it, spraying and spilling down onto the ground; Zed couldn't help but smile about it. Like a cold shower it had ripped him out of the haze of his worries. Twisting the handle of his knife, he tore the wound more open before yanking the blade away, a trail of blood flying through the air.

Only now his shield partners had noticed what happened, everyone in closer proximity drawn in. Their expression frozen, their movements halted for a moment. Zed knew what they were feeling. He could smell it, he could taste it… it was fear. Paralyzing fear, that wouldn't stop gnawing on them;

And it was hectic, very much so as the battle continued, the Ionians using the distraction to go ahead and defend everything that they loved and valued, more cold blood spilling on the soil. Man after man fell at the hand of the Ionian guardians.

While the Noxians tried to regain their ground, Zed was like a shadow in the back, always there, always a threat. It seemed just so easy, they did not even know what they were dealing with.

He made a deep breath, closing his eyes, following the cruel pulsing of fear that he could still feel, like purple burning candles in a pitch black room. Each time he turned, he felt a slow moment of resistance until the shimmer was blown out.

Until the room was pitch black. No light. No nothing. Zed tried to open his eyes, but he saw nothing. A cold shiver ran down his spine before he turned to the side and he let the darkness take him for now.

Now it was clear. All this…all this was a dream. There was no fighting. There was no blood and no killing. Of course it had been a dream, why else would have been a shadow? Why else would they have been afraid of him?

Still, everything was dark. Wasn't he about to wake up? Maybe, after all he could already see this was a dream..., but he couldn't move, he saw nothing. He was not even sure at this point if his eyes were open already or not.

The next thing he knew he felt pressure on his back he had no clue where it came from. Something nudged against his shoulder, shaking him through a little bit.

"Wake up"

Two words, they took a little while to sink in. Yes, waking up. He had tried that before, it had not worked. Maybe he should tried again now…

"Wake up!"

This time they were louder, more persistent. Finally Zed started to feel himself again, his eyes fluttering open as the bright light of the sun shined him right into the eyes and with a groan he put up an arm to shield his sight from the blinding sun rays.

"Finally." Akali groaned, standing up after kneeling next to his unconscious body for a few hours. She felt as if her knees would have fallen off if she would have to for any longer. It was not like she was kneeling on grass.

Her gaze traveled over the plain they were in, the ground that had been trampled mat and the blood that had soaked itself into the ground. There way too many bodies lying around on the ground; The townspeople and guards had started collecting them, preparing a grave for them. They also had died in honor.

For the girl, this was not as important, she was more terrified. She had rushed back into their little camp, trying to get every person willing to fight to defend the only place that was helping sustaining them, but when she came back she returned to a bloodbath and Zed was the center of it.

There was no scratch on him, not even the smallest bit, just the sprays of blood of all the bodies that laid scattered around him, all of their throats cut open with one precise cut.

Not even the guards knew what to tell her. For all they saw it had not been this boy that had caused this mayhem, but a monster, a shadow with one scarlet and one ice blue eye and as far as Akali was concerned that did not sound like her boyfriend.

Finally she turned back around to him, looking down on him as he had just managed to sit up. "Come on, Zed, let's leave." She held out her hand to him in an obvious gesture, but it was obvious that something was bothering her. She knew she never was good in hiding her emotions

Zed fortunately was still too dizzy to notice that as he took her hand, getting pulled onto her feet. One arm wrapped around her shoulder as he pulled her closer, both for comfort as well as habit.

It was still surreal on how casual he was acting right now. Did he not realize what just happened? Or did he just not care? Did he really just ruthlessly kill all those people? Without even a small second of hesitation… She hardly could believe it.

There were a few minutes of silence before Akali finally opened her mouth again: "Zed?" She asked, her gaze following their footsteps instead of looking him right into his eyes. He just responded with a grunt…she could see him rubbing his eyes from the corner of her eyes.

"Do you know what happened in the time between when I ran off to the camp and when I woke you up on the field?" Once again there was a minute of silence. Akali rose her eyes to see his reaction, but there were almost were none. His eyes looked tired and he was sliding his hand across his face multiple times before he answered.

"Not really... I somehow fell asleep…I was dreaming for some reason." He responded, looking a bit disturbed at his own answer as some things were not adding up at all. "Somebody must have knocked me out in the beginning."

"And what did you dream about?" She asked next, a frown on her brows. It sounded weird to her as well. Zed smirked before leaning a bit more onto her. "Something ridiculous..."

With a soft smile she was about to ask what exactly he dreamed about before he added: "... I killed them all." And it felt as if her heart had dropped into her stomach

Slowly they made their way away from the village towards their camp. It was taking longer than usually, Zed having to take a break here and there, leaning against the nearest tree every time to take a few breaths before they kept walking.

Every time they had to stop he noticed that Akali frowned, a worried expression. And each time he would grasp her hand, squeezing it with assurance while forcing a smile on his face so long until she would return the gesture.

He himself had no clue why he was that way. After all he had just slept so there was really no reason why he felt so tired. Every step was like he had to move through molasses with boots made from pure lead while every muscle in his back ached as if it was about to rip at any second. What he really needed more was a hot bath...

"We can take a longer break, if you need that" Akali noted as they once again held at the next tree, the forest only a few dozens meters away from them. The worried expression once again appeared on her face before Zed once again held his hand out to her. By now they both had realized they put up a face for each other. For Zed it was an appreciated effort at least.

"I don't think that is necessary." He responded before pushing himself away from the tree.

slowly they were enveloped by the long shadows of house-sized trees. It somehow made Zed feel already ten times more safe. It helped him keep pushing as they now started to have to fight through the underbrush and uneven way.

With the last few steps they finally breached through the brushwork that was hiding their camp. As soon as they stepped out from the underbrush into the lighting all the eyes were on them, specifically Zed as men and women stared, visibly tensed even though it seemed as if their leader had returned totally unharmed.

Many of them had dropped everything in order to come to assist them. Like Akali they had been shocked to find all of the enemy's army either slaughtered or fleeing with the tales of a dark monster jumping through the enemy ranks and cutting throats open as easily as someone might breathe.

Of course, nobody else knew of Zed's dreams, but knowing their master was underneath all those bodies and the fact that they could not find him at first had planted a seed of worry inside of them that now turned into a weird mix of relief and suspicion. After all, nobody had only a single clue what was going on.

Zed only gave them a short smile, channeling his last energy to stand up straight in front of his people. "Don't worry, I am back. I am just a bit tired, besides that, I am doing fine!" He announced, trying to sound as sincere as possible about it.

They wanted to believe, but there was nothing they could do about it as they followed him on his way towards his house to rest. Many asked themselves the question, what would have happened if they insisted on talking to him more after this incident.


End file.
